


Finding a Singularity

by oceanwayvs



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Side yuwin, main jaeyong, side johnten
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-09
Updated: 2019-07-09
Packaged: 2020-06-25 05:03:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,994
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19738858
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/oceanwayvs/pseuds/oceanwayvs
Summary: Taeyong was still holding onto his dreams. Jaehyun had very few dreams of his own. The two of them were both almost too busy to live their own lives, until they meet someone worth living for -- each other.





	Finding a Singularity

**Author's Note:**

> hi~ i'm excited to finally share my first fic! just a disclaimer that all of the names i use (besides nct) and locations that i use are just made up and any real life connections are just coincidental :) hope you enjoy!

Normally, Taeyong would leave right after teaching the class. He was exhausted but with recital coming up, Taeyong used every free minute to keep practicing, as if his bones didn’t know when to stop. It was the first showcase ever since the founder, Park Minseo, moved to America and left the studio in Taeyong’s hands. Even if running the studio was technically his side job, he took it pretty seriously, for Minseo’s sake. His actual job was far less exciting, in his eyes at least. Although most people would be grateful to land a job straight out of college, Taeyong didn’t think teaching a high school English class was something to be particularly envious of. 

"Take a break, Yong," a voice called out. It was Ten, obviously. No one else had a key to the studio.

"Why are you here, Ten? It's late," Taeyong said, still going through his routine.

Ten walked towards the sound system and paused the music. "You work too hard, you know that?" 

Taeyong looked at him, grudgingly. "Did you have to stop the music?"

"Yeah, I did. Why are you here so late anyway? You’re never here this late. "  
"The recital is in a few days. It'll probably be my last real performance and you know a lot of choreographers will be there. Maybe they'll bring me to America like they did with Minseo," Taeyong said, sitting himself up against a wall, "and besides, why are you here this late? shouldn't I be the one scolding you?"

"I’m always here this late. It’s the only time I can come after school, which is why I know you're not supposed to be here," Ten replied, extending his hand to help Taeyong up. "Don't overwork yourself. Heck, I'll even take you out right now. I can call up Johnny and Yuta too. come on."

Ten dragged Taeyong out of the studio, locked it up, and called Johnny and Yuta all too quickly for Taeyong to even process what was happening. "Where are we going?" Taeyong sighed, "is this just an excuse for you to hang out with Johnny while I babysit Yuta?"

"Hmm...maybe!" Ten laughed but Taeyong didn't find it funny. "Lighten up, Yong, it's a joke. I'll make sure you're not lonely." 

Taeyong rolled his eyes and followed Ten to his car anyways.

He loved the three of them, they were his best friends after all, but going out with them was almost always the same. Yuta would go on about his new boytoy for the week, plus some stuff about his company. Taeyong was grateful that his hookups never became anything more serious than that, but as Yuta’s roommate, there are definitely things he wishes he didn’t hear, especially at night. Johnny and Ten, on the other hand, were always constantly flirting, except neither of them realize that it's flirting, but it is, and Taeyong doesn't understand why they won't get together yet. He's asked Johnny before, and he goes straight to the classic "I'm busy with work" excuse, but it's a pretty shitty excuse for a freelance photographer. Taeyong couldn’t really argue since he never really had any of his own stories to tell.

The two arrived first, with Johnny arriving around 5 minutes later, and Yuta last as always. 

"Sorry I’m late," Yuta apologized, "I was actually on a date when you called."

"A date?" Ten asked. "That's a first. What’s gotten into you?" 

"Actually,” he paused, “He asked me on a date. He’s a part-time intern at our company. Super cute. Had my eye on him for a while. Never thought he would make the first move though," Yuta explained, "I kinda like it."

The other three stared at him blankly. None of them had seen Yuta show any serious romantic interest in someone before -- and for Yuta, a date was pretty serious.

"Can we get a name?" Johnny asked.

"Nah," Yuta said, almost too casually, making the rest of them furious.

"So you want to tell us every detail of your sex life but when it comes to stuff we actually care about, you go silent?" Ten cried.

"Calm down, I don't even know if I wanna get serious with this guy yet. Plus, isn't it kinda weird to date a coworker?" Yuta said, “I don’t even know if this is allowed to be honest.”

"isn't it weird considering you’re basically his boss?" Taeyong asked.

Yuta laughed. "I guess? I haven’t thought too much about it all. Plus I've only been working for a year I'm not really his boss," Yuta replied. 

"Except you basically are," Johnny added. 

“Excuse you, my grandfather is the boss of the company. I am just a simple businessman,” Yuta corrected him.

It amazed them how dense Yuta really was at times. Yuta was a businessman for Kitsune Franchises, true, but he was also the grandson of the founder and CEO. As much as he loved his grandfather and Japan, he moved to Korea to get a more honest education, without a silver spoon in his mouth.

"You'll take over the Korean division soon right?" Taeyong asked, "of your grandpa's company?" 

"I don't know," Yuta replied, "I’m qualified but it’s only been a year. I think the current president has a son who's trying to take over as well.”

“Who is it?” Johnny asked.

“His name is Kim Doyoung I think?” Yuta responded.

Ten laughed, “No way.”

"Wow, you know him?" Johnny asked Ten.

"Of course I do, we’re in the same business law program. We were in the same economics class last semester, philosophy before that. He’s a bit shy and kind of a nerd," Ten remarked, "He's kinda cute though."

Johnny playfully shoved Ten's shoulder. Ten was obviously trying to make him jealous – and it worked. 

"So, is this Doyoung guy single?" Johnny asked, smirking as he saw Ten roll his eyes and take a drink from the corner of his eye.

Ten placed his glass on the table, "You're out of luck Youngho, he's been dating Kim Jungwoo for as long as I can remember."

Not like that information particularly mattered to Johnny, but he could sense Ten getting a little annoyed, which was just a little payback for earlier.

About an hour and a few drinks later, Yuta got a call. he claimed it was urgent, which was rare for him. Taeyong guessed that the call wasn't truly about work, after all, Yuta was just completely smitten by whoever was on the other end. Yuta stepped out to answer his phone, while Ten saw this as an opportunity to head back to the studio to practice like he was supposed to.

"You can just head back with Yuta, right Yong?" Ten asked.

"Yeah, our place isn't too far from here. I'll see you soon," Taeyong replied.

"Alright I'll see you," Ten said waving goodbye to Taeyong and Johnny as he walked out.

"You didn't even say goodbye to him," Taeyong said.

"I waved, didn't I?" Johnny answered.

"Yeah well, you know how picky Ten can be, especially with you."

Johnny smiled and took another sip.

"Come on Johnny, when are you gonna tell me the truth?" Taeyong spoke, looking Johnny straight in the eye. "What's the real reason you haven't made things official with Ten?"

Johnny paused and looked away for a moment before looking back at Taeyong.

"I think I want to go back to America," Johnny said softly, afraid Ten would somehow hear him, even though he had already left.

Taeyong didn't expect to hear those words come out of Johnny's mouth. not in a million years and certainly not now. after he heard stories about Johnny begging his parents to let him move to Korea, it didn't make sense why he would want to move back. 

"Do you remember Han Soomin? The girl from my photography class that kinda had a crush on me?" Johnny spoke.

"Nope," Taeyong said, honestly.

Johnny laughed, "Ok well, she contacted me the other day saying that her boyfriend works for a magazine and wanted to hire some new photographers. She recommended me and they said they liked my work and offered me a job.”

“So what did you say?” Taeyong asked.

“Well, obviously I said no at first. I told them I had a few more events lined up until next month and I wouldn’t be able to move on short notice. They said I could take my time deciding and -- well, the more I think about it, the more I think I should take it.”

"How long do you have to decide?" Taeyong asked.

"Six more weeks," Johnny said.

Taeyong nearly spit out his drink. "Are you serious? "

"Serious about what?" Yuta asked, joining the conversation once again. 

"Johnny's moving back to America," Taeyong said, with slight anger and disbelief in his voice.

"Might be moving back to America. I still don't know yet," Johnny replied.

"Dude you're kidding right... what about Ten?" Yuta asked.

"I haven’t even told him yet. I don't even know how to. It would break his heart," Johnny said softly.

"Well you're gonna have to tell him eventually, right?" Yuta remarked.

"Yeah, I just don't know when."

There was a long silence. 

“Well, I guess I should head home. I have a wedding shoot scheduled tomorrow,” Johnny said.   
“We’ll head out too,” said Yuta.

The car ride home was pretty silent. A few comments here and there about what they thought about Johnny’s situation and how Ten was going to react. Yet, the whole time Taeyong couldn’t help but feel slight envy growing inside him. He wanted to move to America, he wanted a boyfriend, he wanted a career that he loved doing. He was happy for Johnny of course, but he wished some of Johnny’s luck would rub off on him. 

He didn’t want to think about it too much, especially with his first semester as a teacher starting tomorrow. Everything right now was too uncertain for his liking. He could only hope that this new job could bring some change to his monotonous life. 

\----------------------

“Jisungie? I’m home,” Jaehyun said closing the front door behind him. He kicked off his shoes and slung his bag onto the couch. He noticed a burning smell and started wondering if his little brother was okay.

“Jisung?” he called.

“I’m in the kitchen,” Jisung responded.

Jaehyun walked towards the kitchen, realizing the source of the smell was Jisung’s sad attempt at cooking dinner. He looked at burnt vegetables in a pan sitting on the stove.

Jisung looked away, embarrassed. “I tried, okay.”

Jaehyun laughed, “It’s fine, we can just order out tonight. What do you want?”

“Are you sure?” Jisung asked. The two of them have been tight on money ever since their parents passed away in a car accident, so Jisung always wanted to make sure they weren’t overspending. 

“Just this one time shouldn’t be a big deal. Plus I worked overtime a bit last week, don’t worry so much.”

“Then… sushi?” Jisung suggested.

“Sounds good. I can just order from that one place that delivers, I don’t feel like going out tonight,” said Jaehyun.

Jisung hated to see his brother so exhausted like that. Jaehyun worked almost too hard for the both of them. Not many people could handle graduate school on top of a full-time job, but Jaehyun somehow managed. He rarely gets a lot of sleep, and even when he gets the chance, he doesn’t take it. A lot of responsibility fell on Jaehyun’s shoulders after their parent’s death, leaving Jisung with a lot of guilt looming over him. Even if he wanted a job to help Jaehyun with bills, Jaehyun wouldn’t let him so he could focus more on studying. Of course, Jisung studied, got the highest marks as Jaehyun expected, but it was mainly so Jaehyun wouldn’t have one more thing to worry about. 

“School starts tomorrow, yeah? Do you need me to drive you?” Jaehyun asked.

“I can just take the subway. It’s my third year, I’m not gonna get lost,” Jisung answered.

Jaehyun laughed. “I guess you’re right. Just text me if you need anything, but I’ll probably be in class.”

Jisung nodded. 

“Have you started thinking about which colleges you’re applying to? Your strong suit is science, so keep that in mind when you’re picking schools,” Jaehyun asked.

“Actually…” Jisung began. “I don’t really know if college is right for me.”

Jisung wanted to tell Jaehyun the truth about not wanting to go to college earlier, but Jaehyun had always talked like there wasn’t an option to not go.

“What? What do you mean? You have higher grades than me when I was your age!” Jaehyun raised his voice. “You know the only money Mom and Dad have left for us is for your college fund right? And you’re saying you don’t want to go? What other careers could you get?”

He knew he shouldn’t have said anything. It’s always been in his best interest to keep quiet about these things, but the cat was out of the bag and there was no running away from it. It wouldn’t have been any easier if Jisung had waited any longer to tell him either. 

He sighed. “I wanted to attend a professional dance academy instead.”

Jaehyun stared at him with a confused look. He hadn’t attended a dance studio since their parents had passed, but now that he thought about it he wasn’t really sure what Jisung did at all, besides go to school.

“I know what you’re thinking. Do I even dance? How could I afford it? When? Where? Stuff like that, right?”

Jaehyun nodded. “I thought you quit a few years ago,” he stated.

“Well I did,” Jisung started. “But you know my friend Jaemin? He goes to Park Minseo’s studio and he brought me along once. I don’t know how else to describe it but it was really inspiring. I told him that but I declined his offer to join the studio because I knew you wouldn’t let me. So he teaches me some of the routines after school. We actually started a dance team, but it’s really small and pretty amateur.”

Jaehyun was honestly speechless. He and Jisung were closer than most brothers were, or at least that’s what he had believed until now. 

“Sorry for not telling you,” Jisung apologized. “I didn’t know how you were going to react. I was kind of scared, to be honest.”

He had every right to be scared, too. Jaehyun was confused, but not as much as he was angry. He wanted to yell at Jisung, probably like his parents would if they were still around, but he didn’t really have the energy to blow up at him right now. More importantly, he was just trying to process it all.

“So when I’m not home,” Jaehyun began.

“I’m usually learning dances with the team. We met up a lot during the summer. Otherwise, I’m here practicing in front of that mirror,” Jisung explained, pointing to the small full-length mirror they had hanging in the corner of the apartment. “It’s kind of hard to practice here, which is why I want to start going to the studio. You know, to get actual experience.”

Jaehyun sighed deeply and rubbed his forehead. 

“I want the best for you Jisung, I really do. But I--” he stopped and took a deep breath. “I’m going to need a lot more convincing than this. I mean your grades alone right now will get you into a great school. If you could just think abou--”

“Jaehyun,” Jisung interrupted. 

Jaehyun stopped talking.

“We actually have a performance. Would that convince you?” Jisung asked Jaehyun.

He thought about it, and as much as he wanted to shut down his dreams, Jisung would never forgive him for it, and Jaehyun would hate himself just as much.

“Okay,” said Jaehyun, albeit reluctantly. “When and where? I’ll try to clear my schedule.”

“This weekend. Park Minseo Studio in Gangnam. Near your campus actually.”

“I’ll try to make it,” Jaehyun said, forcing a smile. Jisung could tell it was forced, but he appreciated it nonetheless. “Get a video in case I miss it.”

“I will! Don’t worry. Thanks, Jae,” said Jisung.

There was a small hint of excitement in Jisung’s voice. It was barely noticeable but Jaehyun could tell. 

“Alright make sure you have everything ready for school tomorrow. The food should be here soon,” Jaehyun said.

“Okay,” Jisung responded, “and... By the way. I can do things on my own, you know? You have your own life to live too, Jae.”

There was no response from Jaehyun, just a quick nod. This was for Jisung’s sake. That’s what Jaehyun was going to tell himself, for now at least. 

Everything he did was basically for his little brother. Sometimes he would imagine where Jisung would go to college, what he would study. He would recommend scholar programs for him, he even talked to his own professors about how much better of a student Jisung was. Never did he expect Jisung to walk a different path. 

It was going to be okay. Jisung was right too, Jaehyun had his own life to live. When was the last time he took a vacation? Went on a date? He couldn’t remember the last time he went out with friends without having to come home early to make sure Jisung had food to eat. Jaehyun had to admit, he wasn’t getting any younger. Getting his Master’s degree wasn’t helping either. 

He worried about Jisung, that was never going to change, but sooner or later he would have to start worrying about himself too. What did he want for his own future? He didn’t really plan up to this point, and he sure wasn’t a play it by ear kind of guy. Jaehyun liked the predictability of his life, yet he felt as if it just shattered in front of his eyes.

**Author's Note:**

> so that's the end of the first chapter! hope you liked it and if there's any confusion i'll try to clear it up in the future chapters.


End file.
